Course Listings

Psychology

PSYC 331 Development Psychology: Adolescence (1)

Developmentalists regard adolescence as a qualitatively special period/state of life which is different than prior childhood or future adult maturity. In contrast, some social historians see adolescence as a recent phenomenon shaped by industrialization and extended formal education which may be more apparent than real. Our interest is concerned with what adolescence means for our times. We will look at how general psychological theories interpret adolescence. We will also consider general issues young people deal with (family, school, employment, etc.), as well as special problems that some adolescents face (ethnic status, gender perspectives, and poverty).